(MENAFN- AzerNews) The Georgian Government on Monday announced it was
planning amendments in domestic laws to simplify procedures for
obtaining the country's citizenship, Azernews reports, citing
Agenda.ge.
The four legal amendments, aimed at helping Georgians
abroad receive citizenship, were revealed by Justice Minister Rati
Bregadze to the press on Monday.
The planned amendments involve having those intending
to apply for citizenship fill out a test at the State Services
Development Agency, before the full application is submitted.
A failure in the test will mean the Agency will not
start formal procedures for citizenship, saving time and resources,
the Minister said.
Applicants will have the right to retake the exam
without limitations, with results valid for a year. In case of
rejection of applications for citizenship, the procedures can be
restarted in six months, instead of the current one-year cooldown
period.
Finally, stateless persons will be able to obtain
citizenship after spending five years in residency in the country
instead of 10, as part of the Georgian Government's commitment to
the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Bregadze
said.
In reaction to the news, some domestic opposition
groups have claimed the Government was planning a“mass granting”
of citizenship to Russian nationals of Georgian origin, and later
use their support for the 2024 Parliamentary elections, or to
“benefit the Kremlin” amid its ongoing aggression against
Ukraine.
Bregadze responded to the“radical wing of the
domestic opposition” by saying they were trying to“mislead the
public” and“distort the beneficial initiative for tens of
thousands of compatriots living abroad”.
The Minister stressed the 2017 amendments in the
country's constitution required the Government to ensure
maintenance and development of“close ties” with Georgian nationals
living abroad.
He also noted the amendments had been proposed
following requests by the country's diaspora abroad, and on the
instructions of Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili.
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